1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a wedge socket and wedge assembly with an actuator assisted mechanism to assist in attachment and detachment of the wedge and wire rope to the wedge socket.
2. Prior Art
Wire line is frequently used to assist in lifting, pulling or moving heavy objects. One type of wire line is wire rope which consists of a group of strands laid helically around a core. The stands of the wire rope, or cable, consist of a number of individual wires laid about a central wire. Wire rope is known to be versatile and can be used to transmit motion through various planes or angles, can be used to tie down or hold back objects, and can be used to counterbalance, guide or lift objects. Often times wire rope is made from carbon steel wires, but may be made from other materials as well.
Various different usages of wire rope may be found. In one application, one end of the wire rope is attached to a power source such as a crane or winch. The other end of the wire rope is attached to an end fitting. Types of fittings are varied and may include shackles, clips and turnbuckles.
Wedge sockets are one type of termination fitting frequently utilized with wire rope. Wedge sockets provide a mechanism to couple a free end of the wire line or wire rope to another device or object. Wedge sockets are particularly advantageous since they maybe attached and detached in the field quickly and do not require splicing, welding or other operations. In order to attach a wire rope to a wedge socket, one end of the wire rope is passed through a hollow basket of the wedge socket from a smaller opening to a larger opening. Thereafter, the wire rope is positioned in a peripheral groove around the circumference of a wedge. The end of the wire rope is then run back through the hollow basket of the wedge socket from the larger opening to the smaller opening. The wedge with the wire rope around the circumference is then inserted into the open basket of the wedge socket, trapping the wire rope between the edge of the wedge and the interior of the basket. The taper of the wedge and the taper of the inside of the basket of the socket combine so that when tension is put on the wire rope, the wedge is pulled by the wire rope and held firmly in place.
Examples of existing wedge socket designs are disclosed in Assignee's patents, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,845,814 entitled “Wedge Socket” for a terminal end of a wire rope which, is clamped into a wedge socket. Assignee's U.S. Pat. No. 5,953,360 entitled “Extended Wedge Socket Assembly” discloses a wedge socket assembly having an extended portion on the smaller end of the wedge to act as a retaining mechanism for retaining the wedge in the socket.
More recently, new types of wire ropes have been developed having extra high strength without increased diameter. These higher strength ropes tend to be stiffer and more resistant to bending. Accordingly, they have greater difficulty accommodating the relatively sharp bending radius when the wire rope is wrapped around the peripheral edge of the wedge. Accordingly, while higher strength wire ropes are advantageous, they are more difficult to secure to wedge socket assemblies.
Attempts have been made in the past to assist or actuate in the installation of a wedge and wire rope into a wedge socket. For example, Facey et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 6,058,574) discloses a wedge that may be moved in the bore by a rod like tool into an open end of the socket. Childress et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,243) discloses a wedge clamp having slots through opposed sidewalls of a sliding wedge thimble cable clamp casing and a slot through the wedge thimble with a tapered key that is engageable through the slots to lock the wedge into the socket.
There remains a need to provide a wedge socket with an actuator for easy and simple attachment and detachment of the wedge and wire rope with the wedge socket basket.
There remains a need to provide a wedge socket with actuator installation utilizing readily available field tools without need of other tools or equipment.
There remains a need to provide a wedge socket positioning device to allow the wedge and wire rope to be installed concurrently or simultaneously during an actuating process.
There remains a need to provide a wedge socket with an actuator for high strength compacted strand wire rope that can accommodate small diameter wedges.